Hopelessness of the homeless a cause of death

Aisha Dow

Homelessness experts are pushing for the condition to be listed as an official cause of death, as murder, chronic illness and festering sores continue to claim the lives of some of Victoria's most vulnerable.

Without intervention, more than half of Melbourne's rough sleepers are likely to die within five years, according to a 2013 survey.

Desperate lives: Youth Projects chairwoman Melanie Raymond is calling for homelessness to be noted by the Coroner as a contributing cause of death. Photo: Pat Scala

Experts are now calling for records to be kept on sudden deaths in the homeless population, warning that the results could be ''grim''.

Since December, at least seven people known to the city's homeless workers have died, including a man in his 50s who developed a foot wound in a Fitzroy rooming house.

Salvation Army Major Brendan Nottle said the man had put a sock on the sore when it started to smell.

''He ended up losing his leg and then eventually he died,'' he said.

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The alleged murder of rough sleeper Wayne ''Mouse'' Perry under a railway bridge on January 5 has been followed by another killing. A week ago a 29-year-old man died after a violent stabbing in a Kew rooming house.

On Wednesday, homeless father Greg Anderson killed his son Luke Batty, before being shot by police, leaving a traumatised community to examine the small and gaping system failings that might have led to the ''unspeakable'' tragedy.

The homeless death toll would have grown further during Melbourne's heatwave if outreach workers had not helped two young women they suspected had overdosed on heroin. One of the women, aged 19, was about four months pregnant when she was discovered on Elizabeth Street.

Youth Projects chairwoman Melanie Raymond is among those calling for homelessness to be noted by the Coroner as a contributing cause of death.

''We think people die of poverty. It's not a medical term, but the combination of exclusion, lack of opportunity and lifetime disadvantage is lethal.''

She said years spent homeless made people appear much older than they actually were, ''careworn and weary from life on the streets''.

Mouse was originally identified as a man ''in his 50s'' after his killing, when in fact he was only 42.

Last year the Melbourne Street to Home program identified 68 homeless people in the city who were expected to die within the next five years if their situation did not improve. Almost three-quarters were ''tri-morbid, which means they were battling substance abuse, chronic illness and mental health issues at the same time.

Brotherhood of St Laurence chief executive Tony Nicholson said the biggest health risk for homeless people ''in terms of numbers of people'' was actually found in the suburbs.

In the 2011, 31 per cent of Melbourne's homeless (more than 5000 people) were living in severely overcrowded dwellings.

Mr Nicholson said it was extremely hard to maintain healthy and hygienic routines for children living in these conditions, leading to ear infections and other health problems.

Each year the Victorian government spends more than $220 million to support those who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.

But asked whether they should begin recording homelessness deaths, a spokesman said ''appropriate'' death data collection was a matter for the Coroners' Court.

On Sunday, Mouse would have celebrated his 43th birthday. At noon blue balloons will be released in his honour at an Enterprize Park rally that will call for a better deal for those adrift and needy in the world's most liveable city.

Major Nottle said: ''We can be saddened by these sorts of deaths, but assume that nothing can be done to prevent them.

''What we want to do is get the community understanding we must find a way.''